A Special Girl
by BrilliantLady
Summary: Severus is thrilled to discover that young Lily Evans is a witch, when he sees her float off the swing set just like magic. But then Severus makes an embarrassing mistake. Pre-Marauder's Era, featuring Lily, Petunia & Severus. Complete.


A/N: For Psiidmon

* * *

"Lily, don't do it!" a girl's voice shrieked across the near-deserted playground, as a young red-haired girl swang higher and higher.

A skinny pale boy in old-fashioned worn clothes watched covertly from a clump of bushes as the girl launched herself into the air at the apex of her swing and floated gently to the ground like thistledown.

Petunia scowled, hands on her hips. "I told you not to!"

"But I'm fine," giggled Lily. "I love magic!"

"There's no such thing. It's… something else," sniffed Petunia. "I'm sure there's a rational explanation for it."

They'd thought they were alone in the park, but the boy crept out of hiding at her dismissive words. "It _is_ magic. And you're… you're a witch." He gazed at the pretty young redhead in shy admiration, a faint blush staining his pale cheeks.

Petunia shrieked, recoiling away from him in shock at the surprise of his sudden appearance, or perhaps his words. "How dare you say such a thing! You have no idea what you're talking about, we didn't do anything odd!"

Lily was also startled, but not as scared as her sister. "No I'm not!" she said, shaking her head with a small smile. "And that's not a nice word to call someone. You should be more polite."

"It's alright, you _are_ a witch. But there's nothing wrong with that. My mum's one, and I'm a wizard," he said to her, dark eyes gazing intently into her green ones. "I thought you believed in magic?"

"Rubbish," said Petunia, but she sounded unconvincing in her avowal. "He's that Snape boy from Spinner's End, Lily. He's just making fun of us - just ignore him." Petunia stalked over to grab her little sister's hand, but Lily seemed reluctant to leave, dragging her feet.

"Don't go! I'll show you my magic too – we're the same, you and I!" Severus called.

Lily turned her head to watch him over her shoulder as they left, and called back, "I _do_ believe in magic. But I'm not a witch. It's my sister, Tuney. She always catches me when I jump."

"Shh!" Petunia hissed. "What have I told you about talking to people about that stuff? Come on Lily, we're leaving." She tugged firmly on Lily's hand, and the little girl followed her obediently this time.

Severus watched them leave, slack-jawed in shock.

-000-

Two children sat in the shade of a small thicket of trees next to a sunlit river as they discussed their future.

"So Hogwarts is real? It's not a joke? My sister doesn't want me to go – she wants us to go to school together. She says she'll miss me."

"It's real for us," said Severus. "Not for her. We'll get the letters, you and me. You'll get yours first, and I should get mine the year after. We'll learn all about magic. Ignore your sister. She's jealous. She's ordinary, and you're special," Severus said quietly.

"Maybe you're right. She _has_ been a bit jealous," Petunia said thoughtfully, looking rather smug at the notion. "I will miss her though. Won't you miss your family?"

Severus just scowled, then grudgingly admitted, "I'll miss my mum. But… you'll be there. That helps."

"I'm glad." Petunia grabbed his hand and gave it a brief squeeze before letting go, looking embarrassed. "It helps me, too."

They looked shyly away from each other.

-000-

The train whistled piercingly in warning – it was almost time for the Hogwarts Express to leave, and Petunia still wasn't aboard.

Mr and Mrs Evans gave their daughters a little privacy for their farewells, chatting with other parents on the platform. Lily clung to her big sister, sniffling wetly against her shoulder. "It's not fair. I want to go too. I wish I could learn magic. And… I'll miss you, Tuney. You're away _all year_ learning spells, and the summer went by too quickly. You're so lucky!"

Petunia smiled, proud to have something so _special_ about her that her little sister – so cute, so smart, everyone's darling – was still so envious about. She patted Lily's back and rubbed it in comforting circles. "I'll miss you too. I'm sorry you didn't get a Hogwarts letter this year like Severus did."

"I wish I had," Lily sighed, pulling away gently and gazing longingly at the bright red steam train. "But I haven't done anything magical at all. Not the slightest thing, and I've tried _ever_ so hard. Well, you'd better go, Tuney. Severus is waving for you from the carriage door, and he's starting to look cross."

Petunia turned to glance towards the train and gave her friend a little wave, which brought a small smile to his sallow face. "Well, I promised to sit with him and watch out for him. I think he's a bit nervous, though he doesn't like to admit it. He might have had trouble in Muggle primary school, but he won't have any problems with bullies at Hogwarts with _me_ around. I'm a second year now, you know!" she said proudly. "I know loads of spells. He's not making a face because he's mad at you Lily, he just doesn't want me to miss the train, I think."

"You'll remember to write, won't you?" Lily begged. "Send letters with your owl? You must tell me all about your classes! You'll miss me, won't you?"

"Of course," Petunia said gently. "I sent lots last year, didn't I? I'll miss you terribly. We're not just sisters, we're best friends."

"Always?"

"Always."


End file.
